We were planning on meeting between 10 and 10:30 for our hike, so I was able to sleep in which was nice. Andrew figured that we wouldn't have an issue with parking; he said the Monday of a 3-day weekend is usually actually not too busy. That makes sense considering folks are usually packing up and heading home that day and so often relax that morning. I wasn't too sure how true that would be today since the rest of the weekend had been garbage weather-wise, so I figured some folks might try to make up for it today.
Sunny had to be coaxed off the couch and I think he was protesting a little bit for being dragged out of the house.
Sunny and I made it to the trailhead a little after 10am. My concerns were proven wrong as the parking at the trailhead was only about 50% full. Since I'd basically thrown all my stuff in the car last night, I was glad for the extra time to pack our bags and get ready.
I was glad to be hiking with Andrew and his buddy, Chris today.
Wandering in the Woods
The first 1.5 miles of the hike are gradual elevation gain wandering through the woods. There were some muddy bits, but for the most part the trail was smooth and easy to navigate. The blue trail markers are plentiful here.
The hike started off with some mud, but the elevation started almost right away. Once we got started, Sunny perked up and started pulling me along.
I switched Sunny to the shorter leash fairly early on in the hike. With friends, the big leash can get in the way and be pretty annoying. It was also time for me to pull out the trekking poles.
It was nice to be hiking in green woods again. I was starting to get depressed at all the brown.
There were spots with mud, but it wasn't too bad. I wondered out loud whether my earlier hikes in the Adirondacks only felt more muddy because I was now just used to it and had the gear to deal with it. My boots stayed dry on the inside save for some sweat.
This stage of the trail crests a rise and dips down into a little valley with some running water. Sunny took a drink and we moved on. After this, the steepness increased and the trail started taking some turns.
Switchbacks? Switchbacks.
Andrew remembered when the Jay Mountain trailhead was several miles East down the road. I even have an older map that shows where it was. That trail is totally different from the one from the trailhed we used today (the same one we used when I accompanied some friends in 2020). I had trouble finding more detailed maps of the old trail, but I suspect the herd path followed the more traditional Adirondack trail logic. The first 1/3 of the trail we took today featured lots of clean, flat hiking and switchbacks. This wasn't the only thing about the hike that reminded us of hikes out West, but more on that later.
This was a very pretty trail and very easy to navigate. On the descent later, I did have to actively restrain myself from skipping the switchbacks.
Despite the patches of mud, the trails were well-constructed for drainage and, thus, and dry.
There's one minor stream prior to reaching the ridge-top.
We came to the ridge junction in a little over an hour and headed to the North lookout.
Sunny got a chance to play with some other dogs at the lookout.
We hung out, chatted, and took stock of the rest of the hike. We were able to see the rest of the range marching East from here. It looked a bit daunting, but we were still bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.
The Ridge Walk
After a bit more of a climb, the views from the ridge walk open up on one or both sides of the range. This is the other way this hike reminds people of trails out west. This is a very unique Adirondack hike and I love it. Sunny really couldn't care less I don't think. It's all a means to an end for him; that being summit sammich and pets.
Where the ridge has soil, it's quite thin, but hikers have done a fairly good job of sticking to the channels.
Andrew and Chris doin a heckin ponder.
The ridge walk features lots of exposed slabs. Fortunately, they're heavily pitted and thus not slippery.
There are also lots more spots where the trail winds through little summit meadows, which are also quite rare in the Adirondacks. Climbing through these areas filled our noses with lovely flower smells; they even overpowered my shockingly bad body odor today.
As we hiked East, we noticed some rain to the South. Over the next hour or so the weather passed us by, dousing Whiteface, then disappearing to the North.
About halfway across the ridge, the terrain features lots more bouldering and more intricate climbing. None of it was anything we couldn't handle, but what made these sections more difficult was the absence of blazes and trail markers. There were a few spots where we descended on more difficult terrain when we didn't really need to.
This shot looks back at the most technical section of the hike. Coming down, the trail naturally guides you to a fairly steep cliff face (to the right in the photo, straight on from the hiker's perspective heading down). However, the trail actually has a much easier section with bouldering (to the left in this photo, to the right from the hiker's perspective heading down).
Sunny rarely drinks from summit puddles. I'm pretty sure they're normally pretty stagnant, but with the recent rain I suppose they were fresh enough to pass the smell test.
There are many ups and downs to the ridge walk and the cols are filled with little trees and muddy trails. These are probably a nice respite from the wind in the Winter... unless they completely fill with snow, of course. I think this would be a lovely hike with amazing views in the deep Winter, actually.
There are a pair of peaks at the end of the ridge with a shallow col between them. This entire section keept tricking us into thinking we'd made it to the summit only to reveal another climb we had to do. This part of the hike got a bit convoluted from a pathing perspective and we had to check the map several times.
The Benchmark
We made it to the benchmark at the end of the ridge at around 2pm. Although it didn't seem to be the highest point on the mountain from our perspective, when I look at the map, it really is. I think it has something to do with the summit having a lot more foliage than the other high points in the hike.
I set up my relax-a-chair and relaxed. We clocked 2 hours of rest time on this hike and that is fine. We chatted with people all throughout the hike, including here at the point. Sunny got lots of pets today and that made him very happy. This stood in stark contrast to the desolation on Saddleback.
Sunny and Andrew were like peas & carrots.
The tip of the ridge boasts an expansive view across the East including Vermont and Lake Champlain. It also looks out over the High Peaks from Giant to the distant Sewards. This is a really amazing summit and an even better hike in general.
Adirondack Kommando was annoyed he stayed in the bag on Saddleback, so he wanted out for a bit.
Over, Under, Down
The hike back across the ridge was quick and enjoyable. From the views...
...to the meadows...
...and the climbs.
This week, Red Trillium is blooming.
Old joints complained, but we made it back down the elevation to the cars by 5:30. With the usual Stewie's stop, I was able to pick up Quinn before 7pm and get him in bed before 9. Although we'd heard none on our hike, appropriately, some bluejays scolded us on our way out.
We had a great time today. We will be back to Jay Mt. again, I'm sure.
Afternoon hike at Jay Mountain Trail.gpx (388.37 KB)